The members of East Union High School's varsity boys basketball team had reason to celebrate following Wednesday night's 47-42 Valley Oak League opening upset of Ceres High at Phil de la Porte Gymnasium.
The Lancers entered the game having dropped 11 of their 12 preseason contests. The Bulldogs had a 5-7 record.
"It's real frustrating," Ceres High senior guard Martino Bertolotti said. "That's a team that we should definitely beat. It's a wake-up call for all of us."
Bertolotti led the Bulldogs with 16 points. Lance Hunter had 13 points. Marcus Hilgen, Rajdeep Singh and Justin Canatsy added seven, four and two points, respectively.
Ceres High shot 68 percent (17 of 25) from the foul line.
Tyler Bylow made six 3-pointers on his way to tallying 18 points for East Union. Marshall Swift (two treys) and Ricky Interbitzin (one trey) both scored nine points. Ken Martinez and Jarden Carden collected seven and four points, respectively.
The Lancers shot 50 percent (four of eight) from the charity stripe.
The Bulldogs trailed by as much as 12 points in the first half thanks to East Union's perimeter shooting. The Lancers buried seven treys, including five by Bylow and one by Interbitzin and Swift.
A 10-3 run by Ceres High in the closing three minutes of the second quarter closed the gap to five. Bertolotti drained all four of his free throws. Singh converted a three-point play. Hilgen knocked down a jumper in the key and one foul shot.
The Bulldogs trailed 37-34 at the end of the third quarter.
Hilgen made the first of his two free throws to cut the deficit to 39-37 with 6:38 remaining in the fourth quarter.
East Union responded with 5-0 run, extending its lead to 44-37 at the 5:19 mark. Swift hit a 3-pointer and Martinez scored inside.
Ceres High, which never led during the contest, scored just five points in the final five minutes.
"They came out with more intensity in the beginning of the game," Bertolotti said. "We had no chemistry. We weren't able to execute on defense. We gave up easy baskets."
The Lancers entered the game having dropped 11 of their 12 preseason contests. The Bulldogs had a 5-7 record.
"It's real frustrating," Ceres High senior guard Martino Bertolotti said. "That's a team that we should definitely beat. It's a wake-up call for all of us."
Bertolotti led the Bulldogs with 16 points. Lance Hunter had 13 points. Marcus Hilgen, Rajdeep Singh and Justin Canatsy added seven, four and two points, respectively.
Ceres High shot 68 percent (17 of 25) from the foul line.
Tyler Bylow made six 3-pointers on his way to tallying 18 points for East Union. Marshall Swift (two treys) and Ricky Interbitzin (one trey) both scored nine points. Ken Martinez and Jarden Carden collected seven and four points, respectively.
The Lancers shot 50 percent (four of eight) from the charity stripe.
The Bulldogs trailed by as much as 12 points in the first half thanks to East Union's perimeter shooting. The Lancers buried seven treys, including five by Bylow and one by Interbitzin and Swift.
A 10-3 run by Ceres High in the closing three minutes of the second quarter closed the gap to five. Bertolotti drained all four of his free throws. Singh converted a three-point play. Hilgen knocked down a jumper in the key and one foul shot.
The Bulldogs trailed 37-34 at the end of the third quarter.
Hilgen made the first of his two free throws to cut the deficit to 39-37 with 6:38 remaining in the fourth quarter.
East Union responded with 5-0 run, extending its lead to 44-37 at the 5:19 mark. Swift hit a 3-pointer and Martinez scored inside.
Ceres High, which never led during the contest, scored just five points in the final five minutes.
"They came out with more intensity in the beginning of the game," Bertolotti said. "We had no chemistry. We weren't able to execute on defense. We gave up easy baskets."
